The grape...

So here's a quandary; we consume grapes in all manner of disguises, sultanas, currants, raisins etc., and wine of course.

When we had a solitary grape vine, now sadly gone,but a great vine which could nearly cover a single garage, we made five gallons of a Beaujolais type wine each season, so it was probably a Gamay, but we didn't really prune it well, and it was so rampant, that the ugly garage even looked quaint for a time!

But grapes take up a lot of effort, room, and are fussy plants which can get all sorts of 'grape-hump' in their long lives. But hey, where on earth are they all grown these days? We have David Carr-Taylor close by (I know him well, nice chap), and he was one of the first to start a vineyard ages ago in Westfield, near Hastings. There are several in and near Tenterden, Lamberhurst and beyond - the list is endless.

So is English wine going to take over, and what will happen to the sultanas and the raisins? Grapes are an amazing crop, and I tried growing two Muscat vines and gave up, but there has to be an enormous acreage throughout the world to cater for such a great fruit!